Cartridge extracting arrangement for use with firearms

ABSTRACT

A firearm includes a tubular barrel having at its rear end a substantially cylindrical breech portion. A projectile is arranged within said barrel reaching with its rear end into said breech portion and having a peripheral surface. First engaging means is arranged on the peripheral surface of the projectile. A breech plunger is located behind said projectile in the breech portion of the barrel. Second engaging means is provided on said breech plunger and projects forwardly thereof. The second engaging means is adapted to engage with the first engaging means on the peripheral surface of the projectile. In this way, when the engaging means are engaged the projectile can be extracted in rearward direction from the barrel by rearward movement of the breech plunger.

ARRANGEMENT FOR USE WITH FIREARMS [76] Inventor: Hubert Usel, 6401lnzing, Tirol,

Austria 221 Filed: Oct.26, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 192,548

[30] Foreign Application Priority Data Oct. 28, 1970 Austria A9677/7O[52] US. Cl. 42/25 [51] Int. Cl. F4lc 15/00 [58] Field of Search 42/25;lO2/DIG. l

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,641,692 2/1972 Wells 42/252,984,924 5/1961 Reed 42/25 3,609,904 [0/197] Scanlon 42/25 3,144,7278/1964 DeCaro et a]. 42/25 CARTRIDGE EXTRACTING [4s] Aug.21,1973

Primary Examiner-Benjamin A. Borchelt Assistant ExaminerC. T. JordanAttorneyMichael S. Striker 57 ABSTRACT of the barrel. Second engagingmeans is provided on said breech plunger and projects forwardly thereof.The second engaging means is adapted to engage with the first engagingmeans on the peripheral surface of the projectile. In this way, when theengaging means are engaged the projectile can be extracted in rearwarddirection from the barrel by rearward movement of the breech plunger.

6 Claims, 7 Drawing Figures Patented Aug. 21, 1973 4 3,753,307

2 Shoots-Sheet 1 Patented Aug. 21, 1973 3,753,307

2 Shuts-Sheet 8 FIG. 5

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to fireannsusing ammunition, particularly in theform of cartridges.

Ammunition cartridges are often comprised of a forward projectileportion intended to be shot from the firearm and an explosive chargeprovided at the rear of the projectile portion. The explosive charge isfurthermore often surrounded with a casing which, after firing of thefirearm, is left behind in the breech of such firearm to be subsequentlyremoved. Often, however, such explosive charge is not provided with acasing.

With firearms of this type a particular problem arises when it isdesired to remove from the cartridge chamber a cartridge which has notbeen fired or fails to fire. Various methods exist to accomplish thispurpose, such methods being more or less unsatisfactory and requiringcartridge extracting arrangements of greater or lesser complexity.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an arrangement forthe quick and easy removal of cartridges which have not yet been fired.

It is a particular object of the present invention to provide for suchremoval of cartridges whose explosive charge is not provided with acasing.

It is a further object of the invention to provide such an arrangementwhich is reliable in its operation, dependable in its construction andcomposed of few and simple parts.

It is also an object of the present invention to provide such anarrangement for the withdrawal of cartridges that have not been fired,which moreover accomplishes a very effective sealing of the breech.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above objects, and others which will becomeapparent hereafter, are accomplished by providing a cartridge extractingarrangement connected and movable with the breech plunger of thefirearm.

The firearm includes a tubular barrel having at its rear end asubstantially cylindrical breech portion. A cartridge is arranged withinthe barrel and reaches with its rear end into the breech portionthereof. The peripheral surface of the cartridge is provided with firstengaging means to facilitate extraction, and the breech plunger locatedrearwardly of the cartridge is provided with second engaging means. Whenand if it is desired to withdraw a cartridge which has not been fired,the second engaging means, in engagement with the first engaging means,is used to draw the cartridge rearwardly back from the barrel to alocation within the firearm from which it can be conveniently ejectedout of the firearm.

According to a preferred embodiment of the invention the second engagingmeans may be in very simple and expeditious manner configurated as ahook-shaped member provided on a forward portion of the breech plungermeans and adapted to appropriately engage with the first engaging means.

According to the same embodiment, the first engaging means may beprovided in the form of a simple recess in the peripheral surface of thecartridge. Advantageously, the recess extends about the entirecircumferential periphery of the cartridge, so that when the cartridgeis inserted into the firearm, it is not necessary to 2 provide specialmeans, and take special care, that the cartridge be so positioned as toplace the first and second engaging means in rotational alignment, sothat they can be engaged.

Similarly, it:is'advantageous according to a preferred embodiment of theinvention that, if the first engaging means is provided in form of asimple recess in the cartridge periphery, "such recess be locatedforwardly of the explosive charge, so as to enhance the blocking of thebreech and to "reduce somewhat the recoil forces acting upon the plungerwhen the cartridge is fired.

According to the preferred embodiment, the second engaging means isprovided on the breech plunger forwardly of an intermediate shellsection extending forwardly of the plunger. The shell section includestwo cylindrical surfaces of different diameter and with differentcenters. Various combinations of such diameters and centers result indifierent constructional possibilities, as will be explained more fullybelow.

If, as in the preferred embodiment, the plunger moves in a bore havingthe configuration of a right cylinder, it is possible to design theintermediate shell section so that its outer cylindrical surface is ofdiameter equal to the diameter of the plunger and bore and concentrictherewith, so that it appears to constitute a smooth extension thereof.

Alternatively, it is possible to design the intermediate shell sectionso that it is of different diameter and eccentric from the axis of thebore, especially for accommodating cartridges of particularconfiguration, as will be explained below.

The novel features which are considered as charactcristicfor theinvention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. Theinvention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method ofoperation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, willbe best understood from the following description of specificembodiments, when read in connection with the accompanying drawing.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectionthrough the barrel of the firearm, showing the loaded cartridge infiring position;

FIG. 2 is a view of the plunger alone as seen from the front in axialdirection thereof;

FIG. 3 is a view showing the relationship between cartridge and plungerwhen the first and second engaging means are in engagement;

FIG. 4 is a view of the firearm barrel as seen in aimed direction, withthe cartridge and plunger removed;

FIG. 5 is a view similar to FIG. 3, but illustrating a second embodimentof the invention;

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 2 but illustrating the embodiment ofFIG. 5; and

FIG. 7 is a view similar to FIG. 4 but illustrating the embodiment ofFIGS. 5 and 6-.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Discussing now the drawing indetail, and firstly FIG. 1 thereof, it will be seen that there isillustrated the barrel 1 of a firearm. Loaded in the barrel 1 in firingposition is a cartridge which has a forward projectile portion 10 and arearward explosive charge portion 11. With the particular cartridgeillustrated, it can be seen that the forward or conically taperingportion thereof is positioned within a forward portion of the barrel 1,that an intermediate portion of the cartridge is positioned within afiring chamber portion 4 of the barrel 1, and that the rearward orexplosive charge portion 11 of the cartridge is equal in diameter to thecartridge portion accommodated within firing chamber 4.

In the rear or breech portion of the barrel 1 there is provided a breechplunger 5 movable in plunger chamber 2 and provided at its forwardportion with a projecting shell section 6. At the forward portion of theshell section 6 there is seen to be provided a hookshaped member orportion 7. The hook-shaped member 7 is shown in engagement with acorresponding recess portion 12 provided on the peripheral surface ofthe cartridge, intermediate the charge portions thereof.

The breech plunger 5 is of substantially cylindrical shape and hasprovided within it a substantially cylindrical electrode 8. Aninsulating shell 9 of insulating material prevents electricalcommunication between plunger 5 and electrode 8. When the cartridge isto be fired, current is caused to pass between the first electrode 8 anda second electrode which is comprised of plunger 5 itself and the wallsof the breech, thereby electrically igniting the explosive charge. Itshould be understood, of course, that the arrangement of the inventionis not limited to use with cartridges ignited electrically, and that theelectrode 8 and insulation 9 are provided only when necessary andappropriate.

FIG. 2 shows the plunger alone as seen from the front in axialdirection. From this Figure, and from FIG. 3, it can be seen that theouter cylindrical surface 13 of the shell section 6 is provided as acontinuation of the cylindrical surface of the plunger, i.e., equal indiameter thereto and concentric therewith. The inner cylindrical surface14 of the shell section 6, however, is seen to have a diameter which issmaller than the diameter of the plunger 5 and eccentric therefrom. Itis to be noted from FIG. 1 that the inner cylindrical surface 14, whileeccentric from plunger 5, is concentric with firing chamber 4 and theforward portions of barrel 1. It should be clearly understood that thisembodiment is accordingly intended for use with cartridges whoseprojectile and explosive charge portions are of equal diameter. Likewiseit should be observed that while plunger chamber 2 and barrel 1 are ofdifferent diameters and eccentric, they nevertheless are arrangedtangentially in a region diametrally opposite the hook-shaped member 7,in the position thereof illustrated; this is most clearly shown in FIG.4. Thus, as the cartridge is moved forwardly in chamber 2 and inengagement with member 7, it will do so smoothly and in one direction,being while in chamber 2 already in proper alignment with the axis ofbarrel 1.

Aside from its simplicity, the construction of FIGS. 1-4 is advantageousin the effective sealing of the breech by member 7, shell section 6, andplunger 5. A consideration of these four Figures will indicate thatthere does exist a certain amount of dead space about the cartridge, inthe region of its explosive charge. This dead space results from thefact that the shell section 6 and member 7 cannot surround the cartridgewith an angular span of more than 180; clearly, the dead space exists inthe remaining angular portion around the cartridge, at the bottom regionthereof, as illustrated. The dead space has the effect of somewhatreducing the initial pressure developed upon firing. However, this mayprojectile and explosive in fact be advantageous, such as for examplewhen an explosive charge is employed which causes very high initialspeeds of the projectile. Of course,'inasmuch as the plunger surfacefacing the firing chamber exceeds in diameter the charge itself, andthereby provides additional surface against which explosive pressure canbe applied, the construction of FIGS. 1-4 will of course result in acertain increase in the force with which the plunger is pushedrearwardly when the cartridge is fired.

With the construction illustrated, if it is desired to withdraw from thebarrel a cartridge which has not been fired, or fails to fire, theplunger is simply withdrawn rearwardly, the cartridge being moved withit to a rearward location at which the cartridge can be ejected from thefirearm by any of various spring and lever mechanisms known, or anyother arrangement desired.

A second embodiment of the invention is illustrated in FIGS. 5-7. Here,FIG. 6 shows clearly that the shell section 6' with member 7 providedthereon extending through the plunger chamber 2' does not have an outercylindrical surface designed as a smooth continuation of the cylindricalsurface of plunger 5. Instead, the outer cylindrical surface 13 of shellsection 6' is seen to be of lesser diameter than plunger 5 and eccentrictherefrom. The inner cylindrical surface 141' of shell section 6,however, does have a diameter equal to and is concentric with plunger 5.This construction is provided specifically to eliminate the dead spaceoccurring in the first embodiment disclosed. It can be deduced from FIG.6, and is clearly shown in FIG. 5, that the rear circular surface of theillustrated cartridge and the front circular surface of the plunger 5are substantially identical, thereby eliminating the somewhat excessivesurface presented to explosive forces by the plunger of FIG. 1.

Here, too, when it is desired to remove a cartridge which has not beenfired, this can be accomplished easily and expeditiously by simplewithdrawal of the breech plunger 5 in rearward direction, the cartridgebeing carried back therewith to a rearward location where it can beconveniently expelled from the firearm.

It hardly need be said that the exact dimensions and proportionsdepicted are merely illustrative and may be varied over a wide range,depending on the particular type of firearm and ammunition employed. Itis equally clear that even with the cartridge and firearm shown, thevarious members and elements may be designed with many and considerablevariations and still perform substantially the same functions insubstantially the same way.

It will be understood that while the invention has been illustrated anddescribed as embodied in an extracting device for use in firearms, it isnot intended to be limited to the details shown, since variousmodifications and structural changes may be made without departing inany way from the scope of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist ofthe present invention that others can by applying current knowledgereadily adapt it for various applications without omitting featuresthat, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essentialfeatures of the generic or specific aspects of this invention and,therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to be comprehendedwithin the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent isset forth in the appended claims:

1. In a firearm, in combination, a tubular barrel having at its rear enda substantially cylindrical breech portion; a caseless cartridgearranged within said barrel reaching with its rear end into said breechportion and having a peripheral surface provided with a recess formingfirst engaging means; a breech plunger located behind said cartridge insaid breech portion and having an axis eccentrically arranged to theaxis of said barrel, and a projection of arcuate cross sectionprojecting forwardly from said breech plunger and having at its frontend a hook-shaped portion forming second engaging means adapted toengage with said first engaging means during forward movement of saidbreech plunger and for retracting said cartridge in the rearwarddirection during rearward movement of said plunger.

2. In a firearm according to claim 1, wherein said projection has anouter cylindrical surface of a diameter equal to the diameter of saidbreech portion and concentric therewith, and an inner cylindricalsurface coaxial with the axis of said barrel.

3. In a firearm according to claim 1, wherein said projection has anouter cylindrical surface of a diameter less than the diameter of saidbreech portion and eccentric therefrom, and aninner cylindrical surfaceof a diameter less than the breech portion diameter and concentrictherewith.

4. In a firearm according to claim 1, said cartridge having an explosivecharge mounted at its rear, said explosive charge forming between itselfand the remainder of said cartridge said recess serving as said firstengaging means.

5. In a firearm according to claim ll, said hookshaped portion having anarc-shaped cross-section.

6. In a firearm according to claim 1, wherein the tubular space withinsaid tubular barrel and said substantially cylindrical breech portionare eccentric and wherein said space within said barrel has a smallerdiameter than said breech portion.

a a w

1. In a firearm, in combination, a tubular barrel having at its rear enda substantially cylindrical breech portion; a caseless cartridgearranged within said barrel reaching with its rear end into said breechportion and having a peripheral surface provided with a recess formingfirst engaging means; a breech plunger located behind said cartridge insaid breech portion and having an axis eccentrically arranged to theaxis of said barrel, and a projection of arcuate cross sectionprojecting forwardly from said breech plunger and having at its frontend a hook-shaped portion forming second engaging means adapted toengage with said first engaging means during forward movement of saidbreech plunger and for retracting said cartridge in the rearwarddirection during rearward movement of said plunger.
 2. In a firearmaccording to claim 1, wherein said projection has an outer cylindricalsurface of a diameter equal to the diameter of said breech portion andconcentric therewith, and an inner cylindrical surface coaxial with theaxis of said barrel.
 3. In a firearm according to claim 1, wherein saidproJection has an outer cylindrical surface of a diameter less than thediameter of said breech portion and eccentric therefrom, and an innercylindrical surface of a diameter less than the breech portion diameterand concentric therewith.
 4. In a firearm according to claim 1, saidcartridge having an explosive charge mounted at its rear, said explosivecharge forming between itself and the remainder of said cartridge saidrecess serving as said first engaging means.
 5. In a firearm accordingto claim 1, said hook-shaped portion having an arc-shaped cross-section.6. In a firearm according to claim 1, wherein the tubular space withinsaid tubular barrel and said substantially cylindrical breech portionare eccentric and wherein said space within said barrel has a smallerdiameter than said breech portion.